Steam Powered Naruto
by soulful-ginger
Summary: Kurama decides the world is not yet ready for his power after the Gold and Silver Brothers almost capture him. Watch as Naruto inscribes his name in the annals of time as a steam powered shinobi.
1. Steam Powered Shinobi

**A new original for you guys today. All credit for the idea goes to my friend mellra, thanks again man for this sweet idea. I don't own Naruto or any other elements I've thrown in.**

The fabric of time is like a pond, a single ripple can be a single universe.

Throw a rock in it, the ripples change direction. One simple alteration can mean the difference of something little in the grand scheme of things, to something major.

Mountains and rivers could cease to exist, people could never be born, and universes could never be created. Futures become nonexistent, choices can forever be blocked off, fate itself is rewritten.

A simple choice can change the future.

One. Simple. Choice.

**Years before the First Great Shinobi War**

The defeated forms of the once legendary Gold and Silver Brothers lay in a pool of their combined bloods, a massive form towering over them.

"_**Hmmm, almost captured by two vain idiots. This world is not ready for my power"**_rumbled a deep and powerful voice, full of wisdom and anger.

A small fox padded up to the larger form without a care in the world," Master Kurama, I believe returning to our realm would be the best course of action."

"_**Perhaps you are right**_**,**_** Takeshi. If the world came to control my powers…"**_Kurama trailed off as he considered the repercussions.

Nine massive shadows swung behind him before he disappeared in a flash of crimson, the little fox in tow.

Would the entity return?

Only a single choice could decide.

**Valley of the End: The Warring States Period**

"Madara, must it be like this?" the saddened voice of a man bounced across the valley where two figures stood, a brown-haired man lying in a pool of his own blood.

"Sadly, it must…Hashirama. A village with so many secrets cannot stand, nor will I allow it to stand" intoned a more serious voice, a raven-haired figure in blood-red armor stood above him with his blade poised to strike.

"The Will of Fire will always prevail, Madara."

"You do not know the true meaning of shinobi, within all men…there is darkness. And that darkness has infested you, and your brother. Your Will of Fire has cast a shadow in your hearts."

"This battle would have been so much easier without your…'help'."

Behind them all, standing tall even against a waterfall, stood a creature with five whipping tails. A huge, sentient being of chakra.

A tailed-beast.

The Gobi, otherwise known as Madara's new pet.

"So, you actually got it" Hashirama sounded mildly impressed.

"It was not easy, taming a tailed beast; even with the Sharingan at my disposal" Madara cupped a hand over his bleeding eye.

"What do you think Izuna would say about this?" Hashirama tried to stall for time.

"Izuna? Izuna gave me the drive to follow through with this course of action. I can hear his spirit cheering me on from the grave" Madara gave a smirk before looking up to the hypnotized tailed beast.

"Think about this, Mad-"

"I grow tired of your constant distractions. Gobi, attack" Madara leapt forward alongside his tailed pet.

"Well, today just got so much more complicated."

The two shinobi clashed, their powers rocking the very foundations of the mountains around them. Waves crashed, rocks tumbled and split, and the land itself was rewritten under the sheer force the two warriors wielded.

Hashirama's sword clashed with the battle-fan and scythe of Madara, the wood-user dodging strikes from five separate tails and blasts of steam that were fired from the enraged beast looming above him.

'_I've got to end this quick. I don't have too much left to give' _Hashirama growled in his mind.

"What's wrong, Hashirama? Finally growing tired? Pity."

"Hardly. **Wood Style: Great Binding Timber!**" Hashirama roared as branches with the thickness of buildings wrapped around the Gobi, binding it to the ground.

"Damn you, Hashirama! You always have to impress me!" Madara shouted and cloaked himself in his Susanoo.

He was even more surprised when the man in front of him disappeared in a plume of smoke.

He lost his composure as a fist slammed hard enough into the side of his Susanoo to shatter it into ashes of chakra.

Now, now the fight had begun.

From the smoke strode a lone figure, red markings under his eyes and on his forehead, and an image that would forever be burned into Madara's mind.

Hashirama's glowing yellow eyes.

Madara involuntarily shivered.

Hashirama had engaged Sage Mode, this was not good. Not good at all.

The two shinobi looked to the sky; the once blazing sun had set and thrown them into the blackness of night.

It was time to finish this.

"Well, Madara? One final attack?" Hashirama strode confidently towards the tall Uchiha.

"I guess it comes down to what we have left in our reserves. Somehow I always knew it would" Madara charged up the largest fireball he could.

"**Katon: Majestic Destroyer Flame!" **Madara exhaled a wall of fire so tall, it dwarfed even the form of the downed Gobi.

Hashirama simply stood and waited.

And waited.

And waited.

The fireball struck home with a resounding boom that rattled the Earth to its very core, the very mountains themselves reshaping under the mighty pressure. The lake boiled and rocks were superheated to the point of shattering and yet Hashirama did not move. Not an inch.

'_How is he still standing?'_

Madara was answered by a plume of smoke, almost like a signal of his defeat.

**Thunk.**

He felt sharp steel find a new home inside his chest, the blade glinting in the moonlight with his blood.

The Uchiha felt something wet on the back of his neck_,' It must be raining.'_

Hashirama stood behind him, the sword gripped tightly and his jaw clenched tighter as tears streamed from his eyes.

"Why did it have to come to this, Madara?" Hashirama whispered quietly.

"It was bound to end like this my old friend. I'm honestly glad I will fall to you, you will always be my greatest rival" Madara bowed his head as a rivulet of blood trickled from his mouth.

A great crack of thunder rippled throughout the sky as rain finally began to fall, almost like it was trying to wash away the regret both shinobi felt.

"Do it, Hashirama" Madara whispered.

With a sharp tug, the sword came free in a geyser of blood that soaked both warriors in its crimson coating.

'_Goddamn you, Madara.'_

'_Goddamn you, Hashirama.'_

The legendary Uchiha fell to his knees, offered a final gaze at the world, and then fell to the ground in death.

Hashirama couldn't remember how long he stood there, just staring at his former friend's body and silently mourning.

Only the raging of the Gobi brought him back to his senses, along with a pair of slender arms wrapping around his chest.

Mito.

"You did what you had to do" she whispered in his ear softly.

The years seemed to way down on the First Hokage of Konohagakure, making him feel so much older.

"We still have to deal with the Gobi" he motioned to the pinned mass of chakra.

"Seal it within me; my Uzumaki blood can hold its chakra. We need to keep it hidden" Mito began drawing the seals herself.

"Are you sure? We'll have to keep passing this burden down."

"It is for the good of the world. We cannot let this power roam loose, free to do what it pleases. Eventually we'll release it, in an era where it cannot be manipulated like it was here" Mito began to draw the chakra from the Gobi into herself.

'_Let us pray you are right, Mito.'_

**Many Years Later**

The crying of a newborn bounced around the hidden cave where Kushina Uzumaki had been taken to give birth.

"You did it, Kushi-chan! It's a beautiful baby boy!" a nurse cried happily as the women clutched her baby.

Her husband was busy reinforcing the seal on her stomach; to make sure the tailed beast inside did not escape.

Outside the cave ANBU were stationed to deter any and all threats against the women and her husband.

One spoke into his earpiece," Hokage-sama, we've spotted movement outside the entrance, we recommend moving Kushina."

"Thank you, Falcon. We have to-"

The Fourth Hokage was cut off as both nurses fell to the ground with their throats cut into bloody smiles.

"Give me the woman or your child dies" a voice snarled from behind him.

Minato Namikaze swung around and caught the masked man off guard with a spinning backfist to the side of the head, the mask absorbing a huge chunk of the blow.

"Not a smart move, Hokage" the man held a bundle in his hands, one wired with explosive tags.

"Don't you dar-"

The man threw the child into the air; Minato acted on instinct and snatched his son from the air before defusing the tags.

A rush of air announced his wife being kidnapped by the masked man.

"Dammit!" he cursed before using his patented Flying Thunder God technique to teleport to his house, placing his son in his crib before grabbing his battle coat and going to save his wife.

"Just hold on, just hold on" he repeated like a mantra as he teleported in his yellow flash to Kushina's location.

He ended up in a valley, his wife chained to the middle of a rock formation as the Gobi ripped its way out of her seal and in the process, slowly killing her.

"Kushina!" he roared and charged forward, just in time to watch the Gobi break free.

With a roar that seemed to almost shatter the sky, it charged towards Konoha in a cloud of steam.

"Quite the sight, isn't it?"

The Fourth Hokage wheeled around and spotted the masked man sitting on a cliff edge, swinging a leg like he was in the deepest form of relaxation.

"Why are you doing this!? WHY!?" Minato screamed at the man.

"For simple entertainment, Fourth Hokage! This is just for me to enjoy, the destruction of the Leaf Village!" the man chuckled.

"Who are you? What do you have against Konoha?"

"My name is…Madara Uchiha and I have everything against Konoha. I want nothing more than to see it burn" Minato could feel the man's enraging smirk from the orange mask he wore.

His thoughts were interrupted by the cries of pain from his wife.

"You'd better hurry. She doesn't have much longer" the masked man chuckled.

He was caught off guard when a kunai sailed over his head and a Rasengan was rammed into the base of his spine.

With the satisfying crunch of bone, Minato Namikaze knew he had crippled the man.

"GAH!" the man who called himself Madara shouted before disappearing in a swirling vortex.

"And that is the reason you don't fuck with a kage" he growled before flashing to his wife and freeing her of her bindings.

"Mina-kun. Where is Naruto? Where is our son?" Kushina gripped her husband's hand tightly.

"He's safe, Kushi-chan. I'll take you to him."

The pair disappeared in a yellow flash.

**Back in the Apartment of Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki**

The wailing of their child could be heard as the pair appeared in their apartment, Kushina hobbling over to cradle her son.

"The Gobi is attacking the village. How do we stop it Kushi-chan?" Minato looked to his wife.

"You can't, you can only seal it again…I don't think I can survive another sealing" she fell to the bed with Naruto in her arms.

"Then we'll have-"

"Don't say it…Don't say it! You know what the villagers will do!" Kushina shouted with a surprising amount of strength for someone who just had a tailed beast ripped out of them.

"I know, dammit! But we can't let the village be destroyed and we can't ask another family to give up their child!" Minato shouted back.

The pair was silent, only listening with bittersweet happiness to Naruto's light cooing.

"We have to do it, Kushi-chan" Minato spoke in a small voice.

The redhead answered only by clutching her blonde bundle tighter.

"Fine, but one of us has to live for him" she smiled sadly as Naruto gripped her finger tightly.

"It'll have to be you, Kushi-chan. I have to use…The Reaper Death Seal, it's the only thing that can stop it fast enough" Minato stood and threw off his battlecoat.

"Mina-kun…"

"Be a good mother, Kushi-chan. I'll see you in the afterlife, my love" Minato gave her a final warm smile before taking Naruto and disappearing in his yellow flash of chakra.

All Kushina could do was sob quietly as she prepared to lose the man of her dreams, and possibly her son.

She lamented and cursed the heavens for robbing her of her chance to finally have a full and beautiful family; this was supposed to be her happily ever after.

It was a good fifteen minutes before she felt it.

She felt a twitch in the back of her mind, like it was telling her something was wrong.

"Mina-kun!" she gathered the last of her strength and shushined to Minato's location.

She arrived just in time to stop a giant hoof from crushing her son; Minato supported it with her although she could tell he was drained of chakra.

"Kushi-chan? How did you know?" Minato hacked out some blood.

"I just…felt something" Kushina could feel her organs being destroyed by the pressure and charka the Gobi emitted from its entire being.

"Dammit! You were supposed to live, you were always the survivor" Minato cursed as he could feel his strength waning, the Reaper Death Seal slowly killing him.

With a massive combined shout, the pair threw the Gobi away from their son. It was done, the seal was in place and the Gobi soon found itself being sucked back inside of a jail cell.

The day was saved, Konoha wasn't destroyed, and all it had cost them was everything.

Both parents crawled their way over to their son, slowly and painfully.

"Naruto-kun" Kushina clutched her baby to her chest.

"Hey, buddy" Minato hugged the both of them tightly, everything was beginning to feel really cold.

"Be a good boy, Naruto you're going to experience a lot of pain and suffering. Remember who you are! Find a goal… a dream… and don't stop trying until it comes true. There's… there's so much more that I want to say… to teach you… I want to stay with you… I love you."

"Kushi-chan…" Minato felt his wife growing colder as well.

"Don't look so sad, Minato. I'm… I'm happy. Happy that you loved me. Happy that it's… our son's… birthday. If I try to imagine surviving and the three of us… living together… I can't think of anything… beyond 'I'd be so happy. If I had any regrets… It would be that I won't see Naruto grow up."

Minato could only laugh," Naruto… This is your dad. Listen… To your motor-mouth mother."

"We love you, we love you so much" Kushina finally felt her body giving out.

Finally, almost mercifully, the two great shinobi became one with the afterlife.

The only sounds that filled the air were the sounds of a crying child, roaring fires, and steam hissing.

**Ten Years Later**

Naruto adjusted his hood with a grumble," Bastards."

He had just gotten a small beating from some angry fuckers who kept calling him 'Demon' and 'Horse Brat'.

Seriously, Horse Brat just sounded ridiculous. If they were going to insult him they could at least think of something clever.

'**That's humans for you kid.'**

'_You got that right, Kokuō. Thanks for the armor ideas by the way.'_

No one knew it but Naruto had been in contact with his tenant ever since he could form a coherent thought. If Kokuō hadn't stepped in, Naruto would have had no idea how to make his Steam Armor more bearable.

Instead of the heavy red armor the Hokage had first given him to contain and control the fluctuations of steam that emanated from his body, he wore armor that was a quarter of the weight.

His left side was covered in a myriad of bronze and leather armor, different entwining gears and pipes circling his left arm. A gauntlet with many flashing lights and buttons that allowed the blonde container to direct the flow of steam wherever he wished it was attached to his wrist and forearm.

Other than the armor, his outfit was quite simple, a pair of black ANBU pants that held two shuriken holsters on his left thigh and a pair of thick, leather combat boots that reached mid-shin level.

With Kokuō's chakra enhancements and a healthy diet, Naruto had grown to be one of the tallest kids in his class and was muscled to boot.

'**So, today we graduate huh? It'll be good to finally get rid of those goggles and put on a real forehead protector.'**

'_As long as Hokage-sama honors our request about team selections.'_

'**Getting paired with the Uchiha could prove problematic.'**

'_Neither of us have had great experiences with the Sharingan, I think Hokage-sama will realize that we're made for a Frontal Assault Squad.'_

Naruto's thoughts were interrupted by a bark of laughter and then a shout," Hey, Naruto!"

"Kiba, what have I told you about being loud?" Naruto grumbled.

"S-sorry, Naruto" Kiba rubbed the back of his head.

"It's no problem, work on it" Naruto whacked the dog partnered ninja in the back of the head with his armored gauntlet.

"That wasn't very polite, Naruto-san" a chunnin asshole by the name of Mizuki chided.

"I'm not a polite person, you should probably get used to it" Naruto flipped the chunnin the bird and walked inside.

"That's a detention!" Mizuki called.

"I won't serve it!" Naruto called back.

From somewhere far above, Naruto's parents watched.

The world would watch as he became something of legend.

A steam powered shinobi.

**A great new idea from my friend mellra, thank you again my friend! If you don't like it you can kiss the fattest part of my ramen and anime loving ass! Read, review, favorite, flame, whatever.**

**See you later bro's.**


	2. Hidden in the Steamy Mist

**A second chapter for you sexy sons of bitches out there who enjoy this idea. Someone pointed out that Han's steam powers have nothing to do with the Gobi. It has never been declared, one way or another, if that's true in canon. For the benefit of this story, and my sanity, steam powered ninjutsu are bi-products of being the Gobi's container. Shout out to Mellra yet again for being one of the best idea farms in the world, you made this story not me.**

**I don't own Naruto.**

**Really.**

**Flashback (Naruto: Age 5)**

Naruto sighed again as he shuffled down the streets and tried to ignore the shiver-inducing glares the villagers and some shinobi gave him.

'**Are they really so caught up in their illogical hate? Sometimes I honestly question the hope of the human race.'**

'_W-who said that?' _Naruto very nearly jumped out of his skin as the voice bounced around his head. His reaction caused the villagers to look at him all the more oddly, something Naruto really didn't need at the moment.

"**I would be the might Five-Tails, a giant form of sentient chakra' **the voice answered.

'_Well you're very…forthcoming, Mr. Gobi.'_

'**Mr. Gobi? Haha, I like you kid'** the Gobi chuckled before pulling Naruto into his mindscape.

Naruto opened his eyes to find a grassy plain with a large cage in the middle, a giant four-legged beast lying down in the center watching him with keen interest.

"**So you're finally able to enter your mind. Good, this is sooner than I expected. I'm sure you have many questions" **The Gobi stood and shook itself.

"I t-thought the Yondaime killed the Gobi, th-that was what I was taught by the Sandaime" Naruto stuttered slightly as he gazed up in awe at the form of raw power in front of him.

"**It's a likely story; no one wants to believe that the Hero of the Leaf** **died just to seal away the beast that was rampaging through the village. No one wanted to believe that the beast was still alive, although most of the old generation knows that you are in fact the container of me. Thank your current Hokage for letting that knowledge slip" **the Gobi wasn't exactly pleased with the way the Sandaime had handled everything.

"Why are you so helpful?" Naruto had never had really any reason to trust anyone these days, other than a few of his ANBU guards.

"**It's not your fault I'm sealed inside of you, so what reason would I have to be angry? You're a kid, a strong one at that, who had no control over the events that led to this point. Honestly, I'm here to help you."**

Immediately, Naruto felt his heart cling onto the tailed beast. His affection starved psyche soaring with newfound hope. The notion of affection was somewhat lost on the young boy, having dealt with the harsh stares and whispers and occasional beating.

Tears began to form around his red lined eyes and before he knew it, he'd run into the cage and latched onto the Gobi's giant hoof without a care in the world.

The Gobi was for lack of a better word, stunned. He'd never expected this kind of reaction, even with all of his years of wisdom and knowledge.

'_**Hmmm, this kid is proving to be quite unique. I could get used to him.' **_

Gobi found himself leaning down and nuzzling the top of Naruto's blonde head.

"**So I realized I never told you my actual name"** he saw Naruto's head snap up so fast, he swore he heard a vertebrae snap.

"I thought Gobi was your name" Naruto cocked his head to the side in confusion.

"**That's what everyone assumes about tailed beasts. My real name…is Kokuō. Pleased to meet you, Naruto Namikaze" **Gobi mentally grinned as he let the boy's father's name slip intentionally.

"But my last name is Uzumaki" Naruto couldn't put two and two together.

"**Your father's last name was Namikaze you bonehead" **Gobi face-palmed as much as a horse-dolphin hybrid could, which was a feat on its own.

"The only Namikaze I know is Mina…" Naruto trailed off before looking to have shorted out before he fell backwards in a dead faint.

Kokuō then did something he hadn't in centuries.

He threw back his head and laughed, long and hard until his ribs began to ache and he was gasping for air that never seemed to come.

Somehow, somewhere, down in his heart Kokuō knew he was going to protect this boy by any means necessary.

He had just found a new member of his family.

**Present Time (Naruto Age: 10)**

Naruto sat at the back of the class, snoring loudly and simultaneously flipping Mizuki off. Iruka still had no idea how the blonde did it.

Currently, Naruto was training with Kokuō in his mindscape in the ways of his steam ninjutsu. His jutsu arsenal was already impressive but there was always room for improvement.

He was awakened by Naruto being called to the front of the room by Mizuki.

"Mr. Uzumaki, are there any particular reasons why you've been flipping me off this entire class period?" Mizuki somehow kept his voice calm and even, despite his growing rage.

Naruto swept his bangs out of his eyes and gave the Chunnin instructor a glare that could have frosted the surface of the sun," Simple. I don't like you."

"Well, I am your teacher so I demand a little respect!" Mizuki growled slightly.

"Respect is earned, not given Mizuki."

"That's Mizuki-_sensei_ to you."

"Sure, I'll call you that as soon as you teach me something" Naruto blew a bit of steam from his nose before returning to his seat.

"I wasn't finished with you!" Mizuki clenched his fists tightly, until his knuckles cracked.

Without turning around Naruto nonchalantly spoke," I don't care."

Seeing his partner about to snap, Iruka quickly changed the subject," Today class we'll be taking the genin exams, we'll go by alphabetical order."

Iruka began calling names of nondescript students, faceless civilian ninja who most likely wouldn't make it past Genin.

"Naruto Uzumaki" Iruka called.

As the blonde walked next to Iruka he whispered in his ear," The plan is still on."

The scarred Chunnin nodded before pretending to read something.

As the pair entered the examination room, Naruto smirked as did Kokuō.

"We're going to need you to perform Henge, Kawarirmi, and the Bunshin jutsu before you can graduate" Iruka smiled as he knew Naruto had been granted access to the Forbidden Scroll thanks to his inability to make a standard clone thanks to his above Kage level chakra reserves. All the control in the world wouldn't allow him to do it with ease so he's been given a technique that would kill most jonin due to chakra exhaustion.

In a plume of smoke, Naruto was replaced with a perfect copy of the Yondaime; much to Kokuō's amusement and Mizuki's anger.

When Mizuki went to take a sip of coffee, Naruto substituted his cup with a pair of scissors.

The Chunnin was not pleased.

Iruka stifled his laughter as Mizuki walked back into the classroom, freshly bandaged, and Naruto was still rolling with laughter on the floor.

"Clones, now. No more injuries" Iruka still fought the urge to laugh.

Naruto grunted an affirmative before doing the seals. A large plume of smoke covered the room and when it cleared, Naruto stood amongst thirty perfect copies of himself.

Mizuki stood to take a closer look," These aren't regular shadow clones are they?"

"No, allow me to demonstrate" Naruto surged his Steam through a clone, causing it to erupt in a cloud of boiling steam and singeing off Mizuki's eyebrows.

This time Iruka burst into such hysterical laughter he tipped back in his chair and crashed to the floor, Naruto quickly following as the silver-haired Chunnin felt the raw skin where his eyebrows first were.

"You p-p-ahahah!" Iruka chortled and threw Naruto his forehead protector and with a smirk the blonde Jinchuriki tied it around his neck.

'_You'll pay for this, Uzumaki' _Mizuki thought fiercely before going to search for a marker to draw on some new eyebrows.

A few hundred miles away, a tall swordsman with no eyebrows sneezed.

**Outside the Academy**

Naruto breathed deeply and exhaled steam from his nose, savoring the sweet smells of summer. It was rare that he was in a good a mood as we was at the moment but torturing Mizuki and becoming a genin had definitely raised his morale.

'**You did well, Naruto. I'm proud of you" **Gobi snorted happily as he grazed on a prairie inside of the mindscape.

"_Couldn't have done it without you, Kokuō." _

"**Bah, I'm sure you could have. After probably about three tries" **Kokuō laughed.

Somewhere, deep in another timeline, another blonde ninja sneezed and grumbled about believing it.

Not that those two are related at all.

Really, not at all.

"C-congratulations, N-Naruto-kun" a shy voice squeaked from behind the blonde shinobi.

"Hinata-chan? What did I tell you about stalking and stuttering?" Naruto grinned as he could see her blush, even in the shadows.

"T-that it's wrong and takes away from my confidence" her stutter got gradually better.

"Correct as usual, Hinata-chan. Now let's go out and get some food" Naruto held out his hand, pleased when the shy Hyuuga took it.

It would have been a grand moment, had a parent not opened his loud mouth," Why is the demon holding the Hyuuga heir's hand? He must be up to something!"

All eyes turned to him and all Naruto could do was groan in frustration and rub his temples as the parents descended on the pair in an attempt to separate them.

"**Suiton: Kirigakure no Jutsu"** Naruto sighed and was quickly swallowed by a thick mist, Hinata quickly following him.

'_I'm tempted to use it, Kokuō" _Naruto's irritated voice reached the five-tails.

'**Under normal circumstances, I would say go for it. Seeing as these people are parents though, I'd advise some restraint" **Gobi attempted to soothe the angry blonde.

In the real world, Naruto rubbed his red-rimmed eyes as he groaned in frustration. He sat a fainted Hinata down on a stool and ordered up a bowl of miso ramen.

"Same shit, different day?" Teuchi Ichiraku stepped out from the kitchen and ruffled Naruto's hair before sliding him a free bowl.

"Don't you know it, old man? It's taking all my restraint to not boil those idiots like lobsters" Naruto growled before pulling a red bottle from his shirt and pouring it into the ramen.

As soon as the thick liquid hit the broth, flames roared and touched the ceiling like Satan had just dipped his ballsack in the bowl.

Nose hairs caught on fire, the paint on the walls curled, and three birds in flight burst into flames.

"Still using that sauce, huh?" Teuchi smiled behind the gasmask he had dawned as he had experienced Naruto's…spices…once before.

He still had a few bald patches from the event.

Along with his red-rimmed eyes, Naruto had developed a great love for spicy foods. Some so hot they would kill a normal man.

As Kokuō put it**," If it doesn't burn hitting bottom, you've got a problem."**

The blonde hungrily slurped down the noodles without a care in the world, even as his mouth gave off heat like a radiator.

Hinata finally came to next to him and shyly ordered a small helping of vegetable ramen.

"N-Naruto-kun, are you doing anything later tonight?" she hoped to make some more plans with the boy.

"I'm meeting up with Mizuki and Iruka-sensei for a special test later, it might get me promoted early" Naruto said between gulps of food.

"B-but you ju-just became a genin!" Hinata was surprised, as she knew that all initiates had to go through an initial test before being made official genin of Konoha.

"What can I say? I'm awesome" Naruto smiled warmly and paid for his and Hinata's meal before disappearing in a swirl of steam, but not before giving the shy Hyuuga a kiss on the cheek.

Hinata fainted into her ramen and Teuchi had to make sure the girl didn't drown.

**The Forests Outside of Konoha: Nightfall**

"Did you bring it, Naruto?" Mizuki stared down at his 'subordinate'.

"Yes, Mizuki-sama" Naruto replied in a monotone.

The arrogant chunnin believed he had placed the blonde in a genjutsu that would last just long enough for him to escape to Orochimaru with the villages Forbidden Scroll of Sealing.

Hearing the boy call him Mizuki-sama was just an added bonus.

"Take the scroll off your back and hand it to me" Mizuki ordered.

The blonde stood stiffly and began walking towards the chunnin, his steps slow and mechanical. All part of the plan.

A kunai whizzed past the traitorous chunnin's head and buried itself in the tree next to him.

"Sorry, Mizuki-sama. I guess your genjustu aren't as strong as you thought" Naruto chuckled and stood.

"Dammit, you demon! You've ruined everything; I should have ended you when I had the chance!" Mizuki wound up his throwing arm and hurled the large shuriken on his back with blistering speed.

Naruto simply tilted his head to the side and allowed the blades to fly harmlessly past," You just never learn do you?"

'_If I can't beat him physically, maybe I can beat him mentally'_ Mizuki thought as he was desperate to get out of this situation as he saw multiple ANBU drop from the trees.

"Naruto, do you know why the villagers hate you? Why they beat you, deny you service, spit on you?" Mizuki grinned savagely.

"Oh, please inform me" Naruto picked dirt from his fingernails as Kokuō snickered inside of me.

"Because the Yondaime never killed the Gobi when it attacked all those years ago! He sealed it into you, you're the Gobi reincarnated!" Mizuki howled as he was sure this would destroy the psyche of the Jinchuriki.

He never expected Naruto and all the ANBU surrounding him to burst out into laughter, the blonde guffawing so hard he began to wheeze.

"Y-you hone-honestly thought I didn't know? Why do you th-think I wear this armor? It's for my steam you f-fucking idiot!" Naruto howled with laughter.

Mizuki roared with anger and prepared to strike down the laughing genin for mocking him.

"**Suiton: Kirigakure no Jutsu" **Naruto looked up at the man with a look that would have melted the metal of his forehead protector as he was once again shrouded in mist.

"_Time to use it, Kokuō?"_

"**You best believe it, kid."**

"Where am I, Mizuki-teme? Where could I be?" Naruto's voice drifted through the foggy ocular obstruction.

The chunnin whipped his head around, his mind becoming aware of how hot the mist was becoming.

The last words he ever hear were,**" Suiton: ****Yukemuri Satsujin Jiken."**

He screamed in agony as his flesh began to simply fall away from the bone, all the moisture leaving his body as the mist turned to steam.

The ANBU took a healthy step back as the mist suddenly contracted, as though it was almost done killing the traitor.

All they could hear were the sounds of his agonized death, then silence as the mist dissipated and left them with a clear view of Naruto.

Standing over the bleach-white bones of Mizuki, the Scroll of Sealing in his hands.

As the ANBU looked on, stunned, Naruto stepped over to them with a sheepish look.

"I guess that means we can't interrogate him?"

All the ANBU present face-faulted.

**Sorry for the delay, as my computer was being a twat. Here are some translations for you.**

**Suiton: Kirigakure no Jutsu: Water Release: Hiding in the Mist **

**Suiton: Yukemuri Satsujin Jiken: Water Release: Murder in the Steambath**

**The last one was an original move that my buddy mellra came up with that combines Naruto's steam with the potent, chakra-laced mists that Zabuza commands.**

**Shoutout to mellra for being literally one of the best people I've ever encountered on this site.**


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